Protozoas?

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jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Hello, everyone!

As I posted on Smauggie's thread, she has been having some stomach issues, and the vet had a cancellation this morning, so I took her in a week early, and brought them this morning's stool sample, which was still mushy.

She weighs 692.5, which I'm glad about! :blob8: For those who haven't read my thread, she's a little over 2 years old, and we purchased her from PetSmart (I know, but I felt like I was rescuing her) when she was a tiny baby, roughly a month or so old. Also gonna post on her thread.

I had the vet give me a print-out, just so I could read over it later, in case I forgot anything. So .... I want to share it with y'all. Of course, I've been googling it all afternoon, but that was getting scary, so I'm hoping that someone out here can help! Just looking for someone else who is familiar with this.

As for the exam findings, abdominal palpation showed liquid in her intestines, but was otherwise normal. Remainder of physical exam was normal.

Lab findings: fecal warm saline on the fresh stool revealed moderate levels of motile protozoa (giardia and trichomonas). Two fecal flotations were run and were both negative for parasites.

Tentative diagnosis: Smauggie is possibly becoming sensitive to the intestinal protozoa, which can cause diarrhea.

Recommendations: Thoroughly clean out her cage at home to prevent possible recontamination.

Medication: Flagyl was given to treat for the protozoa. This needs to be repeated in 2 weeks.

I'd like to add, regarding medication, that she told me it was a medication that started with an "M", but the summary said "Flagyl". Maybe a generic name for same med?

We are scheduled to go back in 2 weeks for a repeat.

It says that it didn't find any parasites, but aren't protozoas parasites?

Has anyone else experienced this? I'm sure that I'm just worrying myself for nothing; she's receiving treatment, and I am going to thoroughly clean the tank this evening, but I'm still worried about my "baby" dragon.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
The drug is Metronidazole, and is very commonly used for parasites/protozoa.
Here's some info explaining protozoa/parasites :

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiHg_yKj6HNAhXB5yYKHRBOB3oQFgglMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fparasites%2Fabout.html&usg=AFQjCNE_kPtvBsnIRn6W_phu9I6ZcGY2yQ&sig2=HU6x9hpwnCFRhfCpZGETCA&bvm=bv.124272578,d.cWw

But they are fairly common in reptiles so don't be too worried. So your girl weighs almost 700 grams ? How long is she ? She's a whopper.
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
AHBD":2vljfhtj said:
The drug is Metronidazole, and is very commonly used for parasites/protozoa.
Here's some info explaining protozoa/parasites :

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiHg_yKj6HNAhXB5yYKHRBOB3oQFgglMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fparasites%2Fabout.html&usg=AFQjCNE_kPtvBsnIRn6W_phu9I6ZcGY2yQ&sig2=HU6x9hpwnCFRhfCpZGETCA&bvm=bv.124272578,d.cWw

But they are fairly common in reptiles so don't be too worried. So your girl weighs almost 700 grams ? How long is she ? She's a whopper.

Thanks for replying!

She's at 19", and she's 2 years old. I'm still surprised at how much she's grown since we got her! She was just a tiny, round-headed baby that fit in the palm of my hand. And now ... She's just amazing. Even the vet & the tech commented on how "fat" her tail is. Lol. I have a thread that chronicals her life from when we got her, lots of pics.

Gonna check out the link you sent. I came across what looked like research papers online; talked about diff parasites and how deadly they could be. Another site warned about potential poisoning with some of the meds used to treat parasites. So .... May have worked up myself over it. I know that she's well-taken care of, and I've sought medical attention. Just gotta let the medicine do its job. Hopefully, things will be better when we go back.

My pets aren't pets to me ... They're family. Furry and scaled children. Which means that they are well-loved and cared for ... But it also means that I can get over anxious at times. I hate seeing one of them sick.
 

CooperDragon

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Darwin is going through the same thing. He is on Ronidazole which is a cousin of Metronidazole. His infection has been very stubborn and well entrenched. A big concern is re-contamination so I'd make sure to either put paper towel down as substrate or sanitize tile frequently. I also wipe and spray his bottom with Vetericyn after every poop. Hopefully this helps contain the infection.
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Is Vetericyn something that comes from a vet? Or can I find it online or in a pet store?

It just seems odd that this is happening now. We've had her for over 2 years ... Nothing has changed in our routine. Only thing that's different is her tank, but it was brand new when I bought it, and I cleaned it before moving her into it.

She didn't poop at all today, but ate her Dubia this morn. Barely ate any veggies, and she had been eating them fairly well lately.

So glad to hear that you have another beardie!
 

CooperDragon

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I picked it up at the local farm store. It should be easy to find on Amazon too. It just comes in a spray bottle. It's a disinfectant that is safe to spray on their skin. It's designed to disinfect wounds. Should kill off the leftover bits and is what my vet recommended.
 

Drache613

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Hello,

The Flagyl/Metronidazole is a very commonly used medication & is normally very safe & effective. The usual frequency is once every 7-10 or so days, but once every two weeks is perfectly fine. Just keep her well hydrated while she is on meds & using probiotics while she is on her medication will help out also.
She will be fine, her system should boot them right out especially since it doesn't seem like it is a very heavy load at all.
Her weight is really good for her length so she sounds very healthy!

Let us know how she is doing.
Tracie
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Thanks for the info! :D

We are going back on the 24th, so it's going to be 13 days between treatments, which I kinda wondered about myself. The vet we saw wasn't the usual vet, which I was ok with, because I really didn't care for the other one, who owns the practice. It's an avian and exotics office, and I feel like the owner/vet is more focused on birds and rabbits than reptiles, and we always have to sit there for HOURS, even though we have an appointment. We've been going there since we got her in 2014, so this is our 3rd trip there, and I have thought about moving ... But I can't find another vet that treats reptiles within 100 miles; he's a good 30-40 minutes away as it is.
 

Drache613

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Hello,

It is extremely hard to find a good & caring reptile vet, I agree! :D
How is she doing today? I hope her appetite is good & she is active & basking, too.

Keep us posted on her.

Tracie
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Drache613":1yqnldrl said:
Hello,

How is she doing today? I hope her appetite is good & she is active & basking, too.

Smauggie is eating her dubias and greens and is acting normal. Her poop itself looks more solid than it did prior to her treatment, but the urate doesn't look right yet. It's white but not formed, more like watery.
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Just wondering how things were going for little Smauggie. Sometimes medications will affect the color & consistency of the urates. It does sound like though that she is well hydrated if she is excreting a decent amount of water. Are you getting oral fluids into her daily?
I hope she is doing better now.

Tracie
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
She hasn't pooped since Monday, but that's not too surprising; she doesn't normally go every day. I have an empty water bowl that sits on a rectangular tray from the Dollar Tree, and she usually poops on the tray or in the bowl. She kinda trained herself shortly after we adopted her, and it makes clean-up SO much easier - just remove the bowl and tray, clean them, and put them back. I was hoping she would poop before I left for work today, mostly so I could see it while it was fresh. That's what happened on Monday: by the time Eric or I got home, the poop had sat under the basking light for HOURS, so it had dried up. :roll:

Other than soaking her, she gets most of her fluids from her veggies. I wet them down with water before I give them to her. I do need to soak her today though - I just hate doing it when I get home because it's so close to her bedtime.
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
Smauggie pooped yesterday, but it was back to being mushy and messy. In fact, I had to bathe her because it got on her (her back legs/feet and tail). :( Poor baby. When I left this morning, she hadn't pooped - yet - but I still have yesterday's sample, just in case she doesn't, because we go back to the vet later this afternoon, and I want to bring them a sample. She gobbled up her dubia, as usual, and I gave her greens and squash, but won't know if she ate any of it until I get home from work, around noon. Her appointment isn't until 4, so I called to see if there was a cancellation, so that we can go in earlier, but none so far. :roll:
 

CooperDragon

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Stick with it. These buggers can be really stubborn. Darwin is on round 2 day 16 of Ronidazole and is just starting to show (slightly) less messy poops. Cleanliness is key so it was good you were able to give her a bath. Did you put some betadine in the bath to kill the nasties? Have you been able to pick up some Vetericyn to spray on her bottom?
 

jenn4turtles

Juvie Member
Original Poster
CooperDragon":3a9gsj7n said:
Stick with it. These buggers can be really stubborn. Darwin is on round 2 day 16 of Ronidazole and is just starting to show (slightly) less messy poops. Cleanliness is key so it was good you were able to give her a bath. Did you put some betadine in the bath to kill the nasties? Have you been able to pick up some Vetericyn to spray on her bottom?

I have not picked up the Vetericyn yet; I found it on Amazon, but don't have anything else to order at the moment (trying to get free shipping). I didn't know about the betadine, but I can get that. I hope she didn't make a mess after I left for work today, because it'll stay on her until I get home at noon.
 
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